The Pitt-Johnstown men's basketball team heads into the 2024-2025 season looking to take a step forward after a rebuilding year and making a return to the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Tournament.
 
Head Coach Bob Rukavina has a big mix of veterans and young talent on the roster entering his 36^th season with the Mountain Cats.  Pitt-Johnstown must find a replacement for its top shooter and second-leading scorer, Andy Zuchelli, who ranked 52^nd in NCAA Division II in 3-point shooting and Gavin Headings, a top-10 rebounder in the PSAC.  To do that, Coach Rukavina will look to six returning players who all averaged over 10 minutes per game last season and nine new additions, including three transfers.
 
Four-year starter and team captain, Ryan Smith returns for his senior season after averaging 13.7 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 2.7 assists per game, before an injury prevented him from playing in the last 10 games of the season.  Smith enters his final season with 821 career points, putting him in position to become the Mountain Cats' 35^th 1,000-point scorer.
 
Sophomore guard Vinnie Cugini started the last eight games of the 2023-24 season and caught fire in that role by averaging 11.8 points per game and shooting at a 54% rate.  Cugini also led the team in free throw percentage at 90.2%.
 
The Mountain Cats' second-leading rebounder, Will Kromka is back for his junior season after averaging 5.5 rebounds and a solid 8.8 points per game.  His shooting splits were 49.1% from the field and 36.8% from behind the 3-point line.
 
Another returning forward is red-shirt sophomore Nick Watts had an impressive first collegiate season by averaging 10.1 points and 4.1 rebounds in 20.7 minutes per game.
 
Newly voted captain, red-shirt junior Elijah Sechler (4.5 ppg., 1.9 rpg., 2.4 apg.), returns as the team's main ball handler and on-ball defender after taking over the point guard spot last year.  He joins the Mountain Cats' third team captain in fellow red-shirt junior guard Tyler Bilinsky (1.6 ppg., 1.2 rpg.), another very productive defender and a consistent 3-point shooter.
 
Among the nine newcomers, Pitt-Johnstown added three transfers, including a pair from teams on last year's PSAC Western Division schedule.  Graduate student Sean Dillon comes from Seton Hill after averaging 10.8 points per game and leading the team in assists.  Sophomore guard Adam Bilinsky, the younger brother of Tyler, comes from Mercyhurst as a mid-year transfer and will look to make an immediate impact, while sophomore forward  Baden Forup (Mansfield, OH/Lexington HS) comes from Capital University in Ohio and was an All-Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) Second-Team selection and the OAC/Region VII Freshman of the Year after averaging 14.7 points and 6.8 rebounds per game.
 
The Mountain Cats also brought in six freshmen, including Jay Rose, who scored over 2,000-points and pulled down over 800 rebounds during his high school career at Madison Southern High School in Berea KY, and Pittsburgh area guards Noah Prosser and Keegan Smetanka.  Prosser was a two-time all-section choice who averaged 15.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 5.0 assists per game as a senior at Thomas Jefferson High School, and Smetanka averaged 15.0 points per game and was named first-team all-conference at Shaler Area High School.  
 
A pair of guards from the PIAA District 5 region in All-Somerset County and All-West PAC performer from Windber Area High School Tanner Barkley and Berlin Brothervalley High School's two-time PIAA Class A First-Team selection Craig Jarvis add depth to Coach Rukavina's lineup.  In addition, guard/forward Nate Sprajcar a 22.3-point per game scorer and 2024 Roundball Classic and Cager Classic All-Star from Riverview High School in Verona joins the Mountain Cats for the 2024-25 season.
 
The Mountain Cats look to have a solid team for the 2024-2025 season. Several familiar faces, along with some newcomers who can make an impact should contribute towards getting Pitt-Johnstown back to their winning ways.

Pitt-Johnstown will open the 2024-25 season against Virginia Union and Shaw (NC) at the Slippery Rock Classic on Nov. 8 and 9, before tipping off the home schedule against Penn State-Greater Allegheny on Nov. 13 in the Sports Center.